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Old 11-19-2014, 12:18 PM   #41
buzzcop63
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My post was made to get reactions from knowledgeable RVers to the Trailer Life article as well as the article on The Grand Design new Reflection 27RL 5th wheel that is also in this issue, this trailer, as the article states "it was designed specifically to be towed behind the current crop of properly equipped half-ton pickups". This trailer is a 30'11" length with a GVWR of 9,995Lb. The test truck was a 2014 Chevy Silverado with the 6.2L, 420HP V-8 and a 9,500-pound tow rating, trucks GVWR of 7,200 pounds and 1,957 pound payload. In the article on the Half-Ton Towing, and I quote "So we traveled with no water in the tank, packed lightly and squeaked by for this test." The article states that when they added water, propane and no supplies the trailer weighed 8,780 pounds and had a pin weight of 1,640 pounds, which left them with 317 pounds of payload capacity with no one in the truck!

AGYOUNG got taken to task for his truck-trailer combination because he believed his dealer. Trailer Life writers who we would expect to be experts, in my opinion did the same thing in their selection of TV, they did look at the numbers and still arrived at a choice that is not practical or safe?

I to thank AGYOUNG for his service and want him to know that he is doing more then most RV owners in taking the time to log onto a Forum like this one and learn. If you post questions or make statements on the Forum you open yourself to opinions from others that might be stated strongly but in the end it is very much worth it for the knowledge and safety that it will bring all of us out their doing what we enjoy with our families.
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Old 11-19-2014, 01:25 PM   #42
chuckster57
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We are a Grand Design dealer, gonna watch for that model.
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Old 11-22-2014, 05:18 PM   #43
LittleJoe
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AG YOUNG

At least do this.......scale your truck and MAKE SURE your rear axle weight is not over the max door sticker. ALSO make sure the rear axle weight load is not over the max weight of the tires rating.

If it is your goose is cooked if DOT ever spot checks you (and they do often check obvious problem non commercial veh) aside from fines it is not safe if you are over these limits

As far as weight you are pulling , DOT do not keep records of all the configurations of all the different trucks. When they scale you they check weight on the axles, You had best not be over.......If you are over on tires, that vehicle will not be moving any farther.

If these two weights are good, as has already been said by other professional drivers, the driver is the largest input too safety.
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Old 11-26-2014, 03:27 PM   #44
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Wink

We have a 2011 Ram 1500 Hemi that does well towing our Cougar.
My dealer checked with Ram body builders and they told us that we could tow a max of 9950 pounds with a 1500 pound hitch weight. The trailer GVW is 10,200 pounds. We have towed it in northern Arizona with some 7 and 8 % climbs, it was slow but no real problems. so far we have towed over 5,000 miles with no problems except the China Bombs, which I am replacing with Maxxis ordered from the dealer.
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Old 11-29-2014, 07:37 AM   #45
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chuckster57 View Post
Do you think for one minute that the RV dealer cared of your TV was rated to tow the trailer or not?

Did he tell you that adding airbags increased the axle rating?

Not trying to rain on your parade, but rather provide insight.

Air bags do NOTHING for weight ratings, they just keep the headlights from pointing to the sky.
In defense of RV dealers (Camping World) when I recently purchased my TT they had to fill out a form with my trucks Payload and Tow capacity to make sure it could to tow the trailer I was buying before they would complete the paperwork.
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Old 11-29-2014, 08:04 AM   #46
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I am willing to bet that the number of dealers that DO is less than the number that don't.

When I bought my current rig, that was the FIRST time a dealer asked what I was using as a TV.
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2012 Copper Canyon 273FWRET being towed by a 1994 Ford F350 CC,LB,Dually diesel.
Airlift 5000 bags, Prodigy brake control, 5 gauges on the pillar.Used to tow a '97 Jayco 323RKS.

Now an RVIA registered tech. Retired from Law enforcement in 2008 after 25+ yrs.
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Old 12-01-2014, 11:57 AM   #47
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Relying on a dealer for tow ratings or suitability of a vehicle to tow a particular trailer is the height of folly. If there is a problem or a wreck, you can bet the dealer will deny ever saying anything. Same goes for the salesman that sells trucks.
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Old 12-01-2014, 03:31 PM   #48
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All three major RV dealers in Memphis asked FIRST what my TV was and we went from there. All three even told me I couldn't even tow it off the lot with my F250. Kudos to all three of them.
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Old 12-01-2014, 04:41 PM   #49
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Originally Posted by Tom View Post
Relying on a dealer for tow ratings or suitability of a vehicle to tow a particular trailer is the height of folly. If there is a problem or a wreck, you can bet the dealer will deny ever saying anything. Same goes for the salesman that sells trucks.
The last two fifth wheels I bought came with a "disclaimer" that I had to sign stating that I understood that determining the correct tow vehicle was MY responsibility and that I acknowledged the dealership was not responsible. I had to sign the "disclaimer" in order to proceed with closing the deal. I asked if it was optional, the finance manager stated that without that document in file, the dealership would not process the registration/title and finance documents.

So, at least at Camping World, Houghton Lake, MI and Brewbaker's RV in Onaway, if you don't sign the release of liability , the dealership won't sell you an RV.

There is also a "disclaimer" on the back of every Keystone brochure that states it is the purchaser's responsibility to make sure the tow vehicle is adequate for the RV being purchased. On the "X-lite" models, it goes on to say that RV's marketed as "half ton towables" aren't "towable by all half ton trucks".
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Old 12-04-2014, 04:42 PM   #50
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I've received a few emails lately about half tons. Read the following Q&A (Bottom page) about the F150. http://rvtowcheck.com/FAQ_RVTC.html
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